David Yelland's Best Teacher - John Harding

Former Sun editor David Yelland has published his first novel (see below) - and it was his English teacher at the then Brigg Grammar School who saw beyond his difficult behaviour, encouraged him to read and gave him the confidence to write.

In an article in the TES Magazine published on 23rd July, Mr Yelland pays tribute to former Head of English John Harding. David Yelland writes that he was a shy and sometimes difficult child, whose potential was spotted by his English teacher:

"Mr Harding treated me as if I were the cleverest pupil in the class, even though sometimes my marks were at the bottom, and I started to read ferociously. He would give me small volumes of Dylan Thomas, (Joseph) Conrad and early Philip Larkin."

Through his friendship with John Harding's son Tim, David Yelland spent a lot of time in their home, enjoyed access to their books, and appreciated the atmosphere of discussion.

He adds:

"His influence on me was far greater than he would ever realise. I'm still writing, in a small way, to please Mr Harding."

David Yelland's First Novel

One of the best-known Briggensians is former Sun editor David Yelland. Following his editorship of The Sun, David Yelland studied at Harvard Business School and became a PR consultant. He is now a partner at Brunswick Group LLP, a global financial public relations and communications company in London. In 2007, he was appointed a Life Patron of the NSPCC.

Having become a heavy drinker during his career in journalism, Mr Yelland was saved by rehab in 2005, shortly before his ex-wife, Tania, died of cancer and he was left to take care of their young son.

Now he has written a debut novel for children which aims to encourage adults and their children to be more open about alcoholism. The Truth About Leo tells of a 10-year-old who desperately tries to hide that his father is an alcoholic.

David Yelland has said: "I am not the father in this novel, he is the man I nearly was."

Reviewing the book in the Times Educational Supplement in May 2010, Anthony Seldon wrote:

"Yelland has clear talent as a writer of fiction. The book is a passionate cri de coeur."

The book was published by Penguin's Puffin imprint in April 2010.

Adam Linsley on New Album by Simon Goulding

A new album by bass player Simon Goulding features Adam Linsley on trumpet and flugelhorn. The album is described as a mixture of Jazz, Fusion and Latin-Jazz. Simon Goulding has this to say about it:

"The album is about drawing on my memories of Family past & present here and in Cuba and the experiences we've been through. with the 1st track 'Familia' (Family) setting the scene and the final track 'Mirando al futuro' (Looking to the future) saying where we would like to be in the future. I would say the album is HEAVILY influenced by Cuban music (Emiliano Salvador, Los Van Van, Irakere) as well as my love of Jazz/Rock (Miles Davis, Weather Report, Lifetime). I wanted to portray all of these throughout the album".